Damage

AccuWeather analyzed the cities with the highest numbers of reported lightning strikes relative to the cities’ population densities.

The cities with the most lightning strikes relative to population density lie primarily in the West and Midwest. Out of cities with populations greater than 100,000, the cities with the highest number of lightning strikes relative to population density lie in the South.

The idea that as more people move to Hurricane Alley and other storm-prone places, the future cost of those storms will rise – and that we’re not accounting for that future cost and are therefore likely to be shocked by it – makes intuitive sense.

Now some recent studies have fleshed out the numbers, making it possible to tell this story visually (courtesy of yesterday’s Wall Street Journal). So here goes:

MADISON, Wis. — Some hurricanes are moving more slowly, spending increased time over land and leading to catastrophic local rainfall and flooding, according to a new study published Wednesday (June 6) in the journal Nature.